FACULTY OF RESOURCE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

STB 1093: MICROBIOLOGY

PRACTICAL NO: 1 & 2

TITTLE OF PRACTICAL:

Practical 1A: Microscopy- Observing microorganisms

Practical 1B : Microorganisms from environment

Practical 2: Culturing & Handling of Microorganisms

DATE OF : 25 APRIL 2024

EXPERIMENT
NAME & MATRIC NO : NURUL AKHMAL BINTI ZAINAL ABIDIN 100629

LECTURER : DR ELEXSON NILLIAN

REPORT DUE DATE : 2 MAY 2024

Introduction.

Throughout the lab session, I participated in several activities that would enable me to
appreciate the microbiology concept and sharpen the relevant skills to become a successful
scientist. These included the use of the microscope, culturing of bacteria, and the use of the
aseptic technique. For instance, with the microscope, I was able to see the microbial structures
that helped appreciate the bacterial organization and shapes based on their character. On the
other hand, culturing bacteria was crucial as it gave the experience of practicing and
maintaining pure cultures in identifying colony characteristics.

The challenging part of performing the experiments was the sterility in place during the bacterial
culturing to prevent contamination. Sterilization meant that there was no room for error and the
cultivation had to be immediately discarded after a mistake in the process. It took practice and
the ability to measure efforts to master aseptic techniques.

Nonetheless, exposure to the experiment enabled me to develop resilience and vigilance in

ensuring laboratory practices remain meticulous to prevent interferences in the laboratory
outcomes. The lab session was very informative and instrumental in enhancing my knowledge
of microbiology and as a scientist. It provided a space where I could be part of the scientific
process and also gain practical experience in the different concepts of microbial diversity and
growth.

Furthermore, the lab session really helped me develop my thinking skills by encouraging
problem solving when faced with challenges. Looking back on my experiences I realized how
important it is to take an approach and pay attention to detail in tasks. Also working together
with classmates during group activities allowed us to share knowledge and build teamwork skills
which're crucial for scientific endeavors.

To sum up the lab session was a moment in my journey towards becoming a scientist. It
provided me with experiences, challenges, and chances to grow. By participating in hands on
activities and overcoming obstacles I gained an understanding of microbiology concepts and
honed the essential skills needed for success, in scientific research and exploration.
Practical 1
Microscopic results

Microorganism/slide Observation Description

-spherical or round-shaped
cells.
-purple (Gram-positive)
-pink/red (Gram-negative)
mixed cocous gram stained Magnification: 100x

-rod-shaped bacterial cells

-rounded ends

Bacillus cereus Magnification: 100x

-rod-shaped bacterial cells

-squared or slightly rounded
ends

mixed bacillus gram-stained Magnification: 100x

-spiral-shaped
-smooth, curved body with
tapered ends.

Bacterial flagella polar Magnification: 100x

amphitrichious spirillum volutans
 -fuzzy patches with a
powdery texture
-slender, thread-like
structures
-long stalks with a bulbous
tip

Penicillium Magnification: 100x

-gel-like layer surrounding

bacterial cells.
-appear as a clear halo

Bacterial Capsule Magnification: 100x

-rod-shaped bacterium
-small, straight and
slightly curved rods
-elongated and cylindrical
-rounded or slightly pointed
ends
Escherichia Coli Magnification: 100x

-small, spherical or oval-

shaped cells
-arranged in chains or pairs
resembling strings of beads
with chained-like
arrangement

Streptococcus Magnification: 100x

Discussion-the differences in morphology of the various groups of microorganisms.

Microorganisms have a wide variety of morphological forms, including algae, bacteria, fungi,
protozoa, and archaea. Understanding the diversity of compositions and morphologies is
important for ecological research, taxonomy, and such practical applications as biotechnology
and medical diagnosis. Among the identified morphologies of bacteria are comma-shaped
vibrio, spiral-shaped spirillum, rod-shaped bacillus, and spherical cocci (Tortora, Funke, & Case,
2019).Despite the somewhat similar types of bacteria and archaea morphologies, there are
some differences. Thus, many archaea often have rod-shaped or cocci-shaped forms, like
bacterial forms, but some species have flat discs or bizarrely lobed cells (Grosche & Rouchka,
2017). Fungi have a diverse appearance: they can be unicellular yeasts or multicellular molds
and have complex formation structures and look like mushrooms (Heitman et al., 2017).
Protozoa are classified as unicellular eukaryotes and can have a variety of morphologies,
including ciliated, flagellated, and amoeboid forms (Orr et al., 2018). A wide range of
morphologically varied photosynthetic microorganisms, including unicellular, filamentous,
colonial, and multicellular forms, are collectively referred to as algae. (Leliaert et al., 2016).

Practical 2

Answer all questions in the laboratory manual of Practical 2.

1. Why do you flame the loop before placing it into the culture?
The loop was flamed before placing it into the culture to kill any germs on it, so contamination of
the culture could be avoided.

2. After you have transferred the cultures. Why do you flame the loop before placing it on
the Benchtop?
The loop was flamed before placing it on the Benchtop to sterilise the loop again. This keeps the
work area free of any leftover bacteria or fungi and lowers the avoid the possibility of cross-
contamination between other samples.

3. What may happen if you remove the lid of a Petri plate containing nutrient agar and
place the lid on the benchtop?
If the lid of a Petri plate containing nutrient agar were removed and the lid was placed on the
benchtop, the agar might be contaminated by microorganisms in the air, dry up, or collect dirt
from the bench that would affect the experiment results.
2) Observation and description of E. Coli growth pattern on:

OBSERVATION DESCRIPTION

Unclean skin surface

Large colonies, opaque and entire

Clean skin surface

Small colonies, round, entire and opaque

Skin surface (Nutrient agar)

Irregular, undulated and opaque

Table surface (Nutrient

agar)

Small, round and entire

Air (Nutrient agar)

 Small, round and entire

Air (Potato Dextrose Agar)

Round, entire and opaque

E-coli (Nutrient Agar)

Has a diffuse and hazy growth that spreads throughout the

medium rendering it slightly opaque.

Stab
 The growth pattern of the microorganism
appears as effuse (spreading).

Slant

The microorganism appears as general cloudiness throughout

the broth (turbidity).

Broth
3) Picture of your group member during the practical session (please provide 4-6
pictures on one page)
Reference:

1. Grosche, A., & Rouchka, E. C. (2017). A comprehensive analysis of the impact of

classification strategies in 16S rRNA gene-based microbiome studies. PLOS ONE,
12(6), e0179671. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0179671

2. Heitman, J., Howlett, B. J., Crous, P. W., Stukenbrock, E. H., James, T. Y., & Gow, N. A.
R. (Eds.). (2017). The Fungal Kingdom. ASM Press.

3. Leliaert, F., Smith, D. R., Moreau, H., Herron, M. D., Verbruggen, H., Delwiche, C. F., &
De Clerck, O. (2016). Phylogeny and molecular evolution of the green algae. Critical
Reviews in Plant Sciences, 35(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1080/07352689.2015.1000077

4. Orr, T. J., Reháková, D., Ševčíková, T., & Dartnall, H. J. G. (2018). Protozoa. In T. J.
Orr, D. Reháková, & T. Ševčíková (Eds.), Protozoa and their role in marine processes
(pp. 145-167). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59150-0_13

5. OpenStax. (2022). Bacterial Colony Morphology. LibreTexts.

https://bio.libretexts.org/Learning_Objects/Laboratory_Experiments/
Microbiology_Labs/Microbiology_Labs_I/08%3A_Bacterial_Colony_Morphology

6. Tortora, G. J., Funke, B. R., & Case, C. L. (2019). Microbiology (12th ed.). Pearson.